Scavengers

The reporters asking questions at the President's press conference reminded me of nothing so much as a pack of jackals tearing at a wounded lion which had been injured trying to protect its family. Regardless of the outcome, the lion earns some respect; the jackals are simply disgusting scavengers.

May 30 (TheWrap.com) - A man describing himself as a successful real estate investor has been creating quite a stir with his Twitter feed, @HiddenCash. In what is described as âan anonymous social experiment for good,â he has been leaving envelopes filled with $200 or more in various locations around California. The Twitter feed then posts pictures and clues to the locations of the cash drops, and asks people to share...

Over the years, Javier Torres has worked as a welder, auto mechanic, shipping and receiving grunt and, most recently, construction laborer. But when construction jobs nearly evaporated about three years ago, Torres returned to a vocation he first learned as a poor child growing up in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood. He's a scavenger, one of the almost faceless people - particularly noticeable this time of year - who cruise through alleys and well-groomed...

Paramount Pictures is going mobile as it ramps up promotion on "Star Trek Into Darkness." The studio is teaming with Qualcomm to launch an app at the end of January that will let fans unlock nuggets of information about the film in the months leading up to its May 17 release, with the first info drop occurring during the Super Bowl. During the second quarter of this year's NFL Championship, users will be able to unlock the first of what...

"The main thing are the alleyways. They can take their trucks through the alleys and it's discreet enough that they don't have too much trouble with the cops or residents. " That's filmmaker Ben Kolak talking about why Chicago is so uniquely suited to scrap metal scavenging by one-man, entrepreneurial crews. "Scrappers," the documentary he co-directed with Brian Ashby and Courtney Prokopas (now in a weeklong run at the Siskel)takes a look at two of city's more diligent...

Over the years, Javier Torres has worked as a welder, auto mechanic, shipping and receiving grunt and, most recently, construction laborer. But when construction jobs nearly evaporated about three years ago, Torres returned to a vocation he first learned as a poor child growing up in Chicago's Humboldt Park neighborhood. He's a scavenger, one of the almost faceless people - particularly noticeable this time of year - who cruise through alleys and well-groomed...

A passerby (right) carries away a city traffic light that fell after two vehicles collided Wednesday at 15th Street and Keeler Avenue on the West Side. Kyle Goldberg (below) of the U.S. Department of Transportation's Crash Research Project, takes measurements after the accident, in which a van rammed a car, Chicago police said. The driver of the car was taken in stable condition to Mt. Sinai Hospital with broken ribs and a possible punctured lung. The van driver reportedly fled on foot.

Scavenging through someone else's trash for clothing, art or appliances might seem gross. But driven by environmental concerns and financial constraints, some people get over the initial disgust to "shop" the trash and bring home a few gems. If you're looking to engage in this money-saving pastime, here are strategies to keep in mind: Consider your wallet and the environment. In their book "The Scavengers' Manifesto," Anneli Rufus and Kristan Lawson report that 200 million tons of trash are thrown out each...

The Glendale Heights Village Board is considering stiff fines and other penalties for scavengers who take recyclables from recycling containers. Village Administrator James Kilcourse said residents have complained that they are putting their aluminum cans at the curbside only to watch a scavenger come by and pick them up. Kilcourse said he is studying what surrounding municipalities are doing to discourage scavenging.

"The main thing are the alleyways. They can take their trucks through the alleys and it's discreet enough that they don't have too much trouble with the cops or residents. " That's filmmaker Ben Kolak talking about why Chicago is so uniquely suited to scrap metal scavenging by one-man, entrepreneurial crews. "Scrappers," the documentary he co-directed with Brian Ashby and Courtney Prokopas (now in a weeklong run at the Siskel)takes a look at two of city's more diligent...

Officials are considering implementing a recycling program in the industrial and commercial sectors of the village. If the proposed program is adopted, scavengers would be required to offer a recycling program and accept certain recyclables from industrial and commercial customers before receiving a scavenger license from the village. There are 16 licensed scavengers in the village, and it has been estimated that only about 10 percent of the waste generated from industrial...

They travel in packs, noses just inches away from GPS devices. Suddenly: "I found it!" one boy announces, grinning and peeling away from the group of a half dozen. The others intensify their focus. "Me too!" shouts another a moment later, until all six kids are crowded around a tree, pulling out from a knot a plastic screw-top bottle painted to resemble tree bark. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but everyone gathers around, eager to see what's inside. This is geocaching (JEE-oh-cash-ing)

Two real estate tax scavengers were indicted Friday by a Cook County grand jury on charges they bilked an 88-year-old widow out of two properties she owned in the Wicker Park neighborhood. The indictment charges Roy Huffman and his mother, Phyllis Krajecki, with theft, deceptive practices, financial exploitation of an elderly person and conspiracy in connection with obtaining title on a home and a church building that had been owned by Maria Schneider. Schneider has been declared mentally...

Katie Hawkey's head snapped up when she saw the tall clock. She pointed upward toward it, then beckoned her friend to her side. Hawkey wasn't late for a very important date. Nor was she seeing Big Ben for the first time. No, "Tall Clock" -- actually a mahogany grandfather clock from 1912 -- was an exhibit and the solution to a clue in a scavenger hunt at the Art Institute of Chicago. "Oh, yeah. 'Tall Clock' is 'Time stands tall,' " the 27-year-old Albany Park resident said, repeating the clue to her...

Hauling service companies operating without a village license might face financial penalties in the future. Although three local companies comply with a village law requiring a scavenger license to haul garbage or recyclables, a number of companies do not, said Mayor Betty Cheever. If the village were to fine those companies without licenses, more haulers likely would comply with the licensing requirements, Cheever said. Commissioners are expected to discuss the...

As the proud owner of a new refrigerator, you have a choice to make about the old Whirlpool you just schlepped out to the alley: You can call your local sanitation department, wait several days for a crew to come haul it away and pay a special pickup fee. Or you can go to bed knowing the Trash Fairy will cart it away for free. There's a good chance it will disappear by morning even if you don't believe in the Trash Fairy, which is something we made up anyway. Alleys throughout Chicagoland are patrolled...

Jim Millmaker has found wedding rings and $2 bills in other people's garbage. But these days, like other junk men in Chicago's suburbs, he's finding something else: New laws that make recyclable trash off-limits to him. Driving his pickup truck through Elgin, Millmaker points to green bins along the curb. The bins hold recyclable aluminium cans he once would have been free to take. Not any more. "If you want to (take it), you pay a $500 fine," Millmaker says. "I wouldn`t do that...

As barbecue grills, bikes and an occasional lawn mower disappear from alleys in Evanston, officials are studying how to regulate "junk metal pirates." The scavengers often drive beater pickups and usually target discarded appliances and other castoffs. But some are grabbing items not meant to be carted away, said Suzette Eggleston, superintendent of streets and sanitation. There's another problem besides the pilfering. The city loses money when these rogue haulers drive off...

Scavenger hunts are fun, challenging and even informative. And this week, the ones from Watson Adventures are free. On Saturday, the company will mark its 10th anniversary by hosting no-charge scavenger hunts in eight cities, Chicago among them. The Chicago hunt is called "Starring the Loop," and sends participants to numerous downtown locations that have been featured prominently in movies, including Daley Plaza ("The Fugitive"), City Hall ("The Blues Brothers") and Union Station...